European Kingdoms

Celtic Tribes

Insubres
(Gauls)

In
general terms, the Romans
coined the name 'Gaul' to describe the
Celtic tribes of what is now
central, northern and eastern
France. The Gauls
were divided from the
Belgae to the
north by the Marne and the Seine, and from the Aquitani to the south by
the River Garonne, and they also extended into
Switzerland, northern
Italy, and along the Danube.
By the middle of the first century BC, the Insubres were located in
northern Italy in the vicinity of modern Milan. They were neighboured
to the west by the Salassi,
to the north by the Seduni,
and to the north and east by tribes of the Raeti.

There was a tribal division of the Italic tribe of the
Umbri who were
known as the Insurbes. This is either a contraction of a longer name containing
'umbri' or a pun of some sort on 'umbri', warping it into a third possibility.
As a tribal name, Insurbes (or Insubri) sounds very similar to the Gaulish
Insubres, and swapped adjacent letter or sound positions are very common in
proto-Italo-Celtic, so subres could become surbes. In Latin
there is subruo subrutisubrutum: to undermine, overthrow,
destroy. This prompts the suggestion that Insurbes could mean those who
revolted or destroyed. The element 'sub' means 'beneath' or 'under', so
'destroyed' would probably be an extension, with a core meaning of 'from
beneath'. There is unlikely to be a direct relationship between the Gaulish
and the Umbrian tribes, but it is a notable coincidence that they appear to
carry a name that means the same thing: 'in-' plus 'sub-' plus 'umbro', plus
the possible pun of insurrection made by removing the 'm'. Did they revolt
against the main tribe to form their own independent grouping, and did the
Gaulish Insubres do the same thing, gaining themselves the same name?

The chief oppidum of the Gaulish Insubres was Mediolanum (modern Milan).
They appear to have begun as a canton (or sub-division) of the
Aeduii around 600 BC,
at least according to Livy. They were led into northern Italy by
Bellovesus of the
Bituriges,
the first Celts to breach the Alps, and settled in the far north, around
the waters of the Ticinus (the modern Ticino). Did they gain their name
by rebelling against one of these powerful tribes?

(Information co-authored by Edward Dawson, and additional information from
The La Tene Celtic Belgae Tribes in England: Y-Chromosome Haplogroup
R-U152 - Hypothesis C, David K Faux, from The History of Rome,
Volume 1, Titus Livius, translated by Reverend Canon Roberts, from
Life of Marcellus, Plutarch, Epitome of Roman History,
Lucius Annaeus Florus, and from External Links:
Perseus
Digital Library, and
Polybius, Histories. Other major sources listed in the 'Barbarian Europe'
section of the Sources page.)

c.600 BC

The first century BC writer, Livy (Titus Livius Patavinus), writes of an
invasion into
Italy
of Celts during
the reign of Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, king of
Rome.
As archaeology seems to point to a start date of around 500 BC for the
beginning of a serious wave of Celtic incursions into Italy, this event has
either been misremembered by later Romans or is an early precursor to the
main wave of incursions. Livy writes that two centuries before major Celtic
attacks take place against
Etruscans
and Romans in Italy, a first wave of invaders from Gaul fights many battles
against the Etruscans who dwell between the Apennines and the Alps.

An idealised illustration of Gauls on an expedition, from A
Popular History of France From The Earliest Times Volume I
by Francois Pierre Guillaume Guizot

At this time, the Bituriges
are the supreme power amongst the Celts (who already occupy a third of the
whole of Gaul). Livy understands that this tribe had formerly supplied the
king for the whole Celtic race, either suggesting a previously more central
governance of the Celts that is now beginning to fragment or the typical
assumption that one powerful king rules an entire people. The prosperous and
courageous, but now-elderly Ambigatus is the ruler of the Bituriges, and
over-population means a division of its number is required. Ambigatus sends
his sister's sons, Bellovesus and Segovesus, to settle new lands with enough
men behind them to put down any opposition. Bellovesus
heads towards Italy, inviting fellow settlers to join him from six tribes, the
Aeduii,
Ambarri,
Arverni,
Aulerci, Bituriges,
Carnutes, and
Senones. The body of people
led by Bellovesus himself apparently consists mainly of Insubres, a canton (or
sub-division) of the Aeduii.

It seems that the Celtic
arrival in northern Italy
has not been entirely welcomed. The
Etruscans,
who themselves have been migrating northwards to the River Po from central
Italy, have been clashing increasingly with the Celts for domination of
the region. A pivotal showdown takes place at the Battle of Ticinum in
this year (which must be located close to the main Celtic settlement of
Mediolanum that had been founded by the
Bituriges and
Insubres of Bellovesus around a century before). The Etruscan force, which is
little more than a well-armed militia, is butchered by the Celts in a
ferociously fought battle. This victory confirms Celtic domination of the
region for the next couple of centuries, so that it is called Gallia Cisalpina
(Gaul on 'our' side of the Alps, 'ours' being the Latin and Italic side).

231 - 225 BC

The two most extensive Gallic tribes of northern
Italy, the
Boii and Insubres,
send out the call for assistance against
Rome to the
tribes living around the Alps and on the Rhone. Rather than each of the tribes
sending their own warriors, it appears that individual warriors are hired from
the entire Alpine region as mercenaries. Polybius calls them
Gaesatae, describing it as a
word which means 'serving for hire'. They come with their own kings,
Concolitanus and Aneroetes, who have probably been elected from their number
in the Celtic
fashion.

While most of the Gauls of the third century BC fought fully
clothed, their Gaesatae mercenaries tended to fight with nothing
more than their weapons, and not even the trousers shown here

The Gaesatae are offered a large sum of gold on the spot and the wealth of Rome
is also pointed out - wealth that can be theirs if they stick to their
task. The mercenaries are easily persuaded, and are proud to remind the
other Gauls of the campaign that had been undertaken by their own ancestors
in which they had seized Rome. This strongly suggests that a proportion of
the Gaesatae (probably including their kings) are descended from members of
the Senones
tribe, as it was this tribe that had led the occupation of Rome in 389 BC.

Rome has been informed of what is coming, and hurries to assemble the legions.
Even its ongoing conflict with the
Carthaginians
take second place, and a treaty is hurriedly agreed with Hasdrubaal,
commander in Iberia, which virtually confirms Carthaginian rule there. Such
is Rome's haste that they approach the Gaulish frontier before the Gauls have
even stirred.

It is 225 BC when the Gaesatae forces cross the Alps and enter the valley of
the Padus with a formidable army, furnished with a variety of armour. The
Boii, Insubres, and Taurini
accompany them but the
Cenomani
and Veneti are persuaded to side with Rome, forcing the Gauls to detach a
force to guard their flank. Despite this, their main army consists of about
a hundred and seventy thousand foot and horse, which petrifies the Romans
and reminds them of 389 BC. As well as the four new legions, they are
accompanied by
Etruscans,
Sabines,
Sarsinates, and
Umbri, and
more Cenomani and Veneti. Defending Rome and its territories are
Ferrentani,
Iapygians,
Latins,
Lucanians,
Marrucini,
Marsi,
Messapians,
Samnites,
and Vestini,
plus two more legions on
Sicily and in
Tarentum.

The first battle, when it comes, is near Faesulae, outside the subjugated
Etruscan city of Clevsin. The Romans are decimated and routed by superior
Gaulish tactics. A fresh army under Lucius Aemilius arrives, and Aneroetes
counsels retreat with their booty and army intact, ready to launch a fresh
attack when ready. Consul Gaius Atilius lands at Pisae with the Sardinian
legion and the Gauls find themselves caught between two Roman armies. The
battle is fierce, and the Gauls gain the head of Gaius Atilius. However, the
battle turns against them and large numbers of Gauls are cut down or taken
prisoner, including Concolitanus. Aneroetes is able to flee with his band of
followers, and they commit suicide together.

224 BC

Buoyed by its victory,
Rome
attempts to clear the entire valley of the Padus. Two legions are sent under
the command of the consuls of that year, and the
Boii are terrified into
submission. However, incessant rain and an outbreak of disease prevents
the legions from achieving anything greater.

223 BC

Two fresh consuls lead two more legions into the Padus, marching through the
territory of the
Anamares,
who live not far from Placentia (some readings of the original text translate
this as the Ananes and their home in the Marseilles region, which would be
impossible given the nature of this campaign). They secure the friendship
of this tribe and cross into the country of the Insubres,
near the confluence of the Adua and Padus. Some skirmishing aside, peace
is agreed with this tribe, and the
Romans
head for the River Clusius. There they enter
Cenomani
lands, with these allies providing some reinforcements. Then the Romans
return to the Insubres and begin laying waste to their land. The tribe is
faced with no choice but to fight, and their defeat is all but inevitable.

? - 222 BC

Viridomarus / Britomartus

A king of the Insubres. Killed.

222 BC

With peaceful overtures by the Insubres being firmly rejected by
Rome, the tribe calls on
the Gaesatae once more.
Together they fight the Romans but Acerrae is attacked and destroyed,
robbing the Gauls of their only fortified stronghold. They are again
defeated at the Battle of Clastidium, and Viridomarus is killed in single
combat by the Roman commander, Marcus Claudius Marcellus. Mediolanum is
subsequently stormed by the Romans. Following some hard fighting, the
Insubres are left with no option but to surrender, their unnamed chief
making a complete submission to Rome. This act effectively ends the
Gallic War in northern
Italy, as Rome now
dominates all of the tribes there.

Viridomarus can be a source of confusion, as his name has been translated
in various ways from the original source material. In fact, Viridomarus,
Vertomarus, and Britomarus are all one and the same person. The source name
is probably Viritos, the Roman spelling, with the 'v' actually being a
Celtic 'w' for 'Wiro-', meaning 'man'. 'Wirito-' would either be a 'little
man' or a 'manly man', and a possible baby's name would be Wiritos. The
second part of Viridomarus is 'maro-', meaning 'large'. So Viritomarus
(Wiritomaros) would be a 'manly man' or. more amusingly, a 'Big Little
Man'! Since Celtic is so close to Latin, 'wiritos' could instead be
cognate with 'virtus', meaning 'manliness'. (A similar confusion with
pronunciation could be behind the origins of
Britain as a name.)

By this time, after a few hundred years in northern Italy, the Insubres may
have integrated to an extent with surrounding
Etruscans, Italics
(most likely the Umbri), Ligurians,
and Raeti. Modern archaeology seems to prefer a local origin for these
particular Celts,
but this is more likely to be a result of the aforementioned process of
integration.

218 - 217 BC

The Second Punic War starts at Saguntum (near modern Valencia) in
Hispania. Using Gadir as a base,
Hannibal Barca sets out to attack
Rome, leading his
Carthaginian
armies over the Alps into
Italy.
He has to fight off resistance by Gaulish tribes such as the
Allobroges along the way
but is supported by other Gauls such as the Insubres, who rebel against
their Roman occupiers. At first he wins great victories at Trasimeno and
Cannae which all but destroys Roman military strength, but he is denied
the reinforcements to pursue his victory by an opposing political faction
back at home. As the tidal wave of invasion passes by and dies down, Roman
domination of the Boii,
Gaesatae, Insubres,
Lingones, and
Taurini is renewed.

The Celtic tribes of northern Italy were large and dangerous to
the Romans, unlike their fellow Celts in the Western Alps, who
were relatively small in number and fairly fragmented, although
they made up for that by being even more belligerent than their
easterly cousins

200 - 194 BC

The Insubres support the
Carthaginians
again in 200 BC. Between then and 194 BC there are several minor clashes
between the tribe and
Rome,
but then this changes. Whatever the reason for the change in tack, the
Insubres now definitively ally themselves with Rome and as a result are
able to gain a measure of self-determination.

89 - 49 BC

The tribe gains Latin citizenship and, in 49 BC, Roman
citizenship. They appear to be fully Romanised by this date aided, probably,
by their shared language roots. The city of Mediolanum eventually becomes
medieval Milan. During the late Middle Ages, it emerges as the centre of an
increasingly powerful territory called Insubria, which is better known by
its alternative title, the lordship of
Milan.